Book Description

Excerpt from An Outline of Logic The aim of this volume is, among other things, to give a concrete discussion of ambiguity, to simplify the study of causal connections, and to treat with greater detail than is usually done the type of inference called circumstantial evidence, the nature of proof, and the postulates of reasoning. The place assigned to the syllogism is relatively small, the subject being presented with a minimum of detail. In the distribution of emphasis, the function of logic as a guide in reasoning has been constantly borne in mind. It is partly for this reason that the illustrations are, as a rule, taken from other sources than the physical sciences, because I incline to think that in the past these latter have been relied upon more than is desirable. Finally, I have added a chapter on sense-perception, in the hope that it will aid in making logic a propædeutic to philosophy. A word or two of explanation may be in place regarding the discussion of causal connections. I have ventured to depart from the treatment made classic by J. S. Mill, because the treatment in question seems to me to be neither logically nor pedagogically justifiable. In the first place, we must distinguish between connections that are universal and connections that are causal, and also between the corresponding methods of proof. While a universal connection may be of a causal character, this is not necessarily the case. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.